SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

Discuss solar related topics.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#21

Post by Tillibobs »


I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this, no doubt someone will tell me.
Yesterday ( 8th ) was far too hot for me but the sky was reasonably clear so,for the first time in years, I thought I'd shoot a few videos from the kitchen window. I didn't have much time so I set the Lunt80 up and grabbed old faithful, my DMK21 and soon found out how much I'd forgotten !.
I used the IC Capture programme and shot 4 videos of the Sun spots. There were hints of Proms but it wasn't until I'd packed up that I remembered that the Etalon needed re-tuning for Proms doh ! .I also forgot to remove the tuner before I started shooting so it hadn't been touched for a few years.All in all an up cock.
I dont know when I'll get round to processing but i promise to show the results on here, at least it'll make a few people laugh and give Fraz and John an opportunity to take the Mickey.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#22

Post by Lowjiber »


Hey Buddy, at least you got your feet wet again... You're ahead of me. LOL I haven't even uncovered my mount since spring. I hope it's still under the cover.

We had a lot of work done poolside this summer, and I'm sure someone bumped the mount. Long range forecast is for temps to drop below 100(+) in a couple of weeks. I'll get the mount realigned and give it a whirl. I'll be in the same boat as you once I start putting "stuff" in place.

Looking forward to seeing your images when you get the chance to process 'em. :)

Clear Skies
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#23

Post by Ben Cartwright SASS »


Has anyone noticed or is it just me, that when I look at the solar group in Cloudy Nights they go overboard on details, techy stuff etc. They are telling me that I need to worry about the right focal ratio camera pixel size etc, that the 174mm is not a great or good solar camera, pixels too big. I need to use a barlow (Quark built in) and then a reducer to back the ratio back down after bumping it up and they go into all kinds of explanations that would confuse college students. Also the main consensus there seems to be that they want soft fuzzy images because that is what you see through the EP. I ask then why do they want color in their DSO images and get the galaxies as sharp as possible, even with the 16 Meade at my club you only see B&W fuzz balls so shouldn't their DSO images also be soft cotton balls?

Myself I image the sun and other objects to please myself! Most people I show images to prefer the sharper but NOT over sharpened images, and comment on the soft ones. It is a fine balance and easy to overdo, but I try.

If I want something very technical answered I will ask it on CN but for normal conversions I prefer here or even Solar Activity on FB. Here I am at Brown University giving a talk about remote imaging, techy area but I kept it simple. Before you think that I was some kind of guest lecturer, it was to my astronomy club, we met there because our club parking lot was covered with snow...

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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#24

Post by Tillibobs »


Lowjiber wrote: Thu Sep 09, 2021 12:41 pm Hey Buddy, at least you got your feet wet again... You're ahead of me. LOL I haven't even uncovered my mount since spring. I hope it's still under the cover.

We had a lot of work done poolside this summer, and I'm sure someone bumped the mount. Long range forecast is for temps to drop below 100(+) in a couple of weeks. I'll get the mount realigned and give it a whirl. I'll be in the same boat as you once I start putting "stuff" in place.

Looking forward to seeing your images when you get the chance to process 'em. :)

Clear Skies
Looks like I managed to record the videos in some wierd format and Autostakert wont accept them for stacking. Heyho, if we learn by our mistakes I'm learning loads.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#25

Post by Solsearcher »


I have to agree with Jeff on much of what he says so I will chime in and add my 2c worth . First I am all solar so this pertains only to solar imaging . When I started doing this Photoshop was in it's infancy and the only stacking program was Registax . As time went on processing programs became more advanced and more tools became available within these programs and along with this came new learning curves for the various "processing techniques"
I have learned a couple of valuable lessons from doing this for many years . Lesson 1 is that no amount of processing skills can fix a poor capture , it is easy to spot an image that has been over sharpened to try to hide blurry detail in a poor capture . If you can capture the details well the image will take little to process and I believe that the less you have to alter your capture the better .
The second thing I have learned is that the sky has the final say if my images will be any good or not . The nice crisp close ups that I like to challenge myself with require a pretty clear and steady sky so I have become more fussy about my local conditions and will not usually set up unless my sky is very good , I had lots of sunny days this summer but too much haze to support any decent images .
There are a lot of opinions out there regarding processing methods and how our images should look , I have to agree with Jeff on this one they should be pleasing to the person who produced them .
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#26

Post by Solsearcher »


Tillibobs wrote: Thu Sep 09, 2021 10:36 am I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this, no doubt someone will tell me.
Yesterday ( 8th ) was far too hot for me but the sky was reasonably clear so,for the first time in years, I thought I'd shoot a few videos from the kitchen window. I didn't have much time so I set the Lunt80 up and grabbed old faithful, my DMK21 and soon found out how much I'd forgotten !.
I used the IC Capture programme and shot 4 videos of the Sun spots. There were hints of Proms but it wasn't until I'd packed up that I remembered that the Etalon needed re-tuning for Proms doh ! .I also forgot to remove the tuner before I started shooting so it hadn't been touched for a few years.All in all an up cock.
I dont know when I'll get round to processing but i promise to show the results on here, at least it'll make a few people laugh and give Fraz and John an opportunity to take the Mickey.
Keith.
Hello Keith my old friend . So nice to see that the treatments are working . I am still using my old dinosaur DMK's as well and would be happy to offer a refresher ;) I will never forget the time we spent together having a few pints in that perfect pub !! Stay well my friend and I am looking forward to seeing your images .
Solar scopes (Coronado Ha) 60mm double stack , 90mm double stack , 150mm single stack .
W/L scope Williams Optic Megrez 110mm / Lunt herschel wedge .
Night scope Celestron 9.25 XLT
Mounts HEQ6 , HEQ5 , Losmandy G8
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#27

Post by Tillibobs »


Hi Mike my old mate, yes we had a good afternoon in " The Sun In Splendor " didn't we ?.
It seems that I didn't record in AVI but some obscure DMK format and Autostakart won't recognise it. I'd welcome a refresher Mike, I've had so much going on over the last couple of years that I've forgotten how to image, let alone process.
I don't know if you have my current e,mail address, its k.tillotson41@gmail.com
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#28

Post by Solsearcher »


Hello Keith
Try this
Format - AVI
Codec - Y800
For the DMK 21 Y800 640X480
Hope this helps !
Solar scopes (Coronado Ha) 60mm double stack , 90mm double stack , 150mm single stack .
W/L scope Williams Optic Megrez 110mm / Lunt herschel wedge .
Night scope Celestron 9.25 XLT
Mounts HEQ6 , HEQ5 , Losmandy G8
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#29

Post by Lowjiber »


I tried to fire up my old (6 years) imaging computer this morning, and it has bit the dust. The drive is simply not working anymore. So, I ordered a new HP with all the latest/greatest "toys"... Much like the one I use for everything else. Now, all I gotta do is load the imaging/stacking software and ImPPG. Of course, I'll load up PS CC 2021 and all the add-ons.

Just another cog in the wheel of getting ready for cooler, desert weather. :)

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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#30

Post by FRAZ »


Expecting good things from you this quarter John. You have been out of the window of opportunity for too long. Much like many others i suppose but happy hunting.
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#31

Post by FRAZ »


I had a look at Sharpcap after seeing some discussions between members recently.

I installed v4. had a bit of a blast with firecapture and then a couple with sharpcap.
My initial unfamiliarity with sharpcap did not help so the interface felt a little cold.
I saw the input from Jeff on the comparison between v3 and v4 which was interesting and it made me pause and not make a snap judgement.
I didn't like or dislike sharpcap, it was just different but I felt that it was clearer on the screen. (easier to see and adjust for focus)
Wasn't sure about framerate on sharpcap whereas it is very prominent on firecapture.
The flat is so much easier on firecapture but this is a minor point that you can cover in your setup methodology with sharpcap.
It was easy to move the roi around the chip on sharpcap, this is especially important on a mod with a reflection/brightspot.
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#32

Post by FRAZ »


Ben Cartwright SASS wrote: Thu Sep 09, 2021 2:10 pm Has anyone noticed or is it just me, that when I look at the solar group in Cloudy Nights they go overboard on details, techy stuff etc. They are telling me that I need to worry about the right focal ratio camera pixel size etc, that the 174mm is not a great or good solar camera, pixels too big. I need to use a barlow (Quark built in) and then a reducer to back the ratio back down after bumping it up and they go into all kinds of explanations that would confuse college students. Also the main consensus there seems to be that they want soft fuzzy images because that is what you see through the EP. I ask then why do they want color in their DSO images and get the galaxies as sharp as possible, even with the 16 Meade at my club you only see B&W fuzz balls so shouldn't their DSO images also be soft cotton balls?

Myself I image the sun and other objects to please myself! Most people I show images to prefer the sharper but NOT over sharpened images, and comment on the soft ones. It is a fine balance and easy to overdo, but I try.

If I want something very technical answered I will ask it on CN but for normal conversions I prefer here or even Solar Activity on FB. Here I am at Brown University giving a talk about remote imaging, techy area but I kept it simple. Before you think that I was some kind of guest lecturer, it was to my astronomy club, we met there because our club parking lot was covered with snow...

I am the good looking one in the center

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Sorry, I looked but can't find a good looking one :tease:
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#33

Post by FRAZ »


:text-feedback: :text-feedback: :text-feedback: :text-feedback: :text-feedback: :text-feedback: :text-feedback:

I was thinking that we might have our own SOLARHEADS image of the month.
Is there any interest or ideas in doing this or am i barking up the wrong tree?

I was thinking we might have any number of made up awards of the month that suited the month in question. Hell we could even turn it into a semi serious closure to celebrate the months end.

e.g. someone may nominate Fraz for latest poster of images of the month. (I still have images from August 28th to post) :face desk:


MY PERSONAL PREFERENCE WOULD BE Honour each category portrayed in the monthly from Observing, to sketching, to white light, to calcium, to Quark to mod, to full disk, to new member, to processing, to software choices, to friends meeting and collaborating, to barbecues etc. We cover so much here in the monthly that we should probably be awarded a community badge just for being us. :)

I think what I am trying to say is that when the month is over or nearly over, we should take the time to appreciate each other and enjoy what we have achieved.
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#34

Post by FRAZ »


Sun280821impBinvmono.jpg
Sun280821impB.jpg
Sun280821impBinv.jpg
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#35

Post by FRAZ »


This next one I have left unfinished to see if we can get some feedback on how to rid us of this common problem. I will post this on its own but for now I want to use it as an example.
Sun280821impBcrispy.jpg
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#36

Post by FRAZ »


What are the problems you see with this image and how would you try to fix them?
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#37

Post by FRAZ »


I'll start you off, top left and bottom right of surface are soft, the only fix for this is to take multiple images in a mosaic and hope for no gradients. The cause is the band of sweet spot in this particular etalon. There will always be variations, regardless of setup you just have to learn your system and make allowances for it.

While you are looking through the middle and up to the prom I'm happy. False colour hides a lot of this or makes it artistic and this is part of the users skill.
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#38

Post by FRAZ »


How would you deal with the sky?

I went it into photoshop and set a dodge and burn routine up and ghosted all the big problem areas out. This is one of the fundamental tools to get rid of the big ugly bits that stretching gives you. I set the size to about 50 and the exposure to below 50 and dodged the dark out of the image.
Last edited by FRAZ on Fri Sep 10, 2021 4:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#39

Post by Lowjiber »


It's late here in the western US. I'll try to add something this weekend, as I'm covered up from 7am tomorrow. :)

Clear Skies
John (Urban Astronomer) Apertura AD10 Dob; XLT 150 Dob; XLT 120EQ; Lunt Solar 60 PT/B1200; ES AR102; SW Pro 100ED; 2 SW Pro 80ED's; 90mm Eq; WO Z-61; SW 90mm Virtuso Mak; 2 Orion ST-80's; Quark-C; Cams: Polemaster, ASI120MM-S, ASI174MM & ASI174MM-C
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Re: SOLARHEADS - SEPTEMBER Chat Group

#40

Post by FRAZ »


Got you John, good luck tomorrow.
Last edited by FRAZ on Fri Sep 10, 2021 12:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Mentored by Keith, Mike, John and Bill. (The old guard) and forever grateful.
PST mod stage 2 - Quark on extended loan and yet to repay with value ;)
Camera- ASi 174 mono no tilt required.
BF10,15,30 straight through with baader ffc. (looking to replace the rusted IFT on 10 + 15 with a maier replacement)
Lots of nighttime scopes and stuff but focus on the sun.
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